Heart disease: How to live longer
Eat a heart-healthy diet
Plenty of fruit and vegetables, and nuts and seeds.
Cut down total fat intake, replace saturated and trans fats with unsaturated fats.
Eat oily fish twice a week.
Cut down your salt intake - no more than 6g salt (2.4 sodium) per day.
Eat garlic - it lowers 'bad' LDL cholesterol.
Watch your weight - it's risky to be overweight, or underweight.
Do aerobic exercise that works the heart and lungs. If you're unfit, ease in gradually.
Give up smoking and avoid smoky places.
Don't drink alcohol excessively.
Have your blood pressure and cholesterol levels checked regularly.
Cut your cholesterol
Cut down on your total fat intake.
Cut down on saturated and trans fats - they increase your level of 'bad' LDL cholesterol.
Mono-unsaturated fats lower your 'bad' cholesterol levels. So, eat vegetable oils such as olive oil.
Poly-unsaturated fats lower your 'bad' cholesterol levels. So, eat oily fish such as salmon, mackerel, sardines and fresh tuna for Omega 3s. Eat nuts and seeds for Omega 6s.
Replace your usual spread with one enriched with plant sterols or plant stanols.
Eat garlic to reduce blood fats and cholesterol.
If you're overweight every 10% of your bodyweight you lose can cut your 'bad' LDL cholesterol by 10% and increase your 'good' HDL cholesterol by 8%.
Half an hour of exercise five times a week can increase HDL cholesterol.
Eat fruit and vegetables for antioxidants and to protect your arteries.
Eat cholesterol-lowering superfoods like oats.
Check your cholesterol levels and if they're high try cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins.
Reduce salt to control blood pressure
Prepare your own food so you can control the salt.
Avoid foods with 1.25g of salt or more per 100g - aim for foods with 0.25g per l00g.
Cut down on cured foods, like bacon and foods in brine, like olives.
Soy sauce is very salty so treat it as pure salt.
Use a small salt spoon to control the salt you add to food.
Use herbs and spices to season your cooking rather than salt.
Make your own pasta sauce with tomatoes, tomato juice, mushrooms, onions, fresh herbs and ground black pepper.
Taste food before you add salt and only add a little at a time.
Make marinades and spicy rubs to add flavour to meat.
Take the salt off the dining table.
Steam vegetables without salt.
If you're using a recipe put in half the salt listed.
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